SEE YOU SOON. (NRK)

SEE YOU SOON. (NRK)

⊱ REQUESTED BY: @rinhyun (💌)

⊱ SYNOPSIS: Whilst watching your friend walk away to chase his dreams, you realized this was the first time such simple words like "see you soon" felt so heavy to utter.

⊱ TYPE OF WORK: oneshot/fic.

⊱ GENRE: angst, unrequited love, childhood best friends to long distance friends.

⊱ PAIRING: nishimura riki x fem!reader.

⊱ WORD COUNT: 1.6k+ words.

⊱ WARNINGS: usages of japanese terms (honorifics and nicknames such as kaa-san, etc.), this is set around the time before the events of i-land.

⊱ AUTHOR'S NOTE: i decided to fit your idea into a more realistic trope (since riki leaving for korea actually happened in real life), i hope you'll like this! credits to my beloved ren @mygnolia for beta reading this for me when i felt like my writing skills have rusted REN IS THE TRUEST MVP IN MY HEART ☝️ /lh

There were a lot of perks that entailed being Nishimura Riki's best friend; or 'bestest friend', as he'd like to call you jokingly.

One of them was that you would need to have a strong immunity to his tendencies of pulling pranks on you; most of them were harmless and somehow, you never minded them.

Whenever Riki would pull little pranks on you, the way his eyes crinkled into crescents as laughter bubbled up from his mouth like soda pop often made you look at him with a fond yet exasperated look.

Besides the occasional pranks, the other perk was getting to listen to him talk on and on about his dreams — of course, the latter was a given.

Everybody knew Nishimura Riki was ambitious; the vigor as he reached out for his dreams, the glint in his eyes, the passion in his heart.

Riki had always been there in your memories. You were his best friend since childhood; you still remembered the first time you met him, shyly hiding behind your mother's legs when she introduced you to the boy that would end up becoming your dearest friend for years.

Riding a bicycle for the first time together, jumping in puddles together, discovering music together… watching Riki join a dance academy whilst you tried your best at studying.

Yet, even someone like you stood meek in comparison to his desire to shine on a stage. You thought that if you pretended the feelings weren't there, they would go away — but they didn't, they never did.

You tried, you really did; but how could you look away when he always gave you that stupid grin? When he always bought extra snacks for you after school because he knew how hard you've been working? When his laughter always sent butterflies flying around in your stomach?

Even after all these years, you couldn't look away.

You knew he didn't feel the same way, but staying beside him was already enough for you. But deep down, you knew; one day, Riki would travel away to chase his dreams and leave.

And you were right.

The sound of luggages being dragged around and the rustlings of people getting up from their seats felt like a taunting ambience to your ears. You could barely register whatever announcement the voice from the intercom was saying. Your mind was buzzing with anticipation, and it was not the good kind.

"(Y/N), you alright there?"

The feeling of a hand resting itself on your head brought you out of your daydream. You almost forgot that the very same boy who had been occupying your mind was here, sitting right beside you.

Riki peered into your face with a raised eyebrow, he was actually a little concerned when he noticed you hadn't been talking as much as you usually would.

Weird, he couldn't place his hands on it. Was there something bothering you? Were you not feeling well? He wanted to ask, but his lips were too frozen to move.

It was unusual of him, Riki was known for his straightforwardness, after all. But for some reason, there was this weight inside his chest that prevented him from asking you directly. He didn't know why either, but you looked so... sombre.

You lifted your head to look at him with a rueful smile as a response. "H-huh? Yeah, I'm okay." That bleak smile of yours didn't sit well with him, you could tell. You didn't mean to make him worried, you were just too immersed inside your thoughts.

But today was supposed to be one of the happiest moments in his life. You didn't want to let your feelings ruin that for him… maybe, it wouldn't hurt to pretend for his sake, would it?

"I'm just kinda sad to see you go, you know?" You put on your best smile, the best one you could muster whilst ignoring your aching heart.

Although, in all honesty, you didn't know whether you said them to reassure Riki or you were just beating around the bushes about your own conflicted feelings. It truly is hard being in love with your own best friend when he's leaving for another country, isn't it?

Riki seemed convinced by your little act, however, he returned your grin with a smile of his own. But before any of you could say anything more, the intercom cut through — this time, with an announcement that shattered your mask of happiness for a split second.

"Good afternoon, passengers. This is the pre-boarding announcement for flight JL2157 to South Korea. Please have your boarding pass and identification ready for departure. Regular boarding will begin in approximately ten minutes. Thank you."

If a few moments before, the light left in your eyes was barely flickering; then, that light was now gone completely.

"Oh, that's my flight." Riki muttered quietly, looking down at the watch on his wrist while the other hand grabbed onto the handle of his luggage.

It's really happening, he's leaving.

This was the moment Riki was waiting for his entire life. You, as his best friend, should know this better than anyone. Yet, why… just, why does it hurt so much?

"Seems like you have to get ready to see me on television soon, huh." Riki stood up from his seat with that same smile on his face. Excitement, elation, and nervousness — all of them were so evident on his face, so evident to the point it pained you.

You didn't even know if you could keep up this facade of happiness any longer. A feeble nod was all you could manage to give to him.

"Riki-kun, there you are!"

Just in time as Riki's mother, the same woman who you grew to look up to ever since you were a kid who always tripped on the stairs, came hurrying towards the both of you with hasty steps.

She had gone to the restroom for a while, leaving you and Riki alone only minutes ago. But those brief moments between the two of you were already broken by the announcement earlier.

Although you might've underestimated her hasty pace, because in just a blink of an eye, she was already engulfing Riki in a tight hug.

"Kaa-san— oof!"

The aforementioned boy let out a suffocated yelp from the embrace, yet he returned his mother's affection all the same. "Make sure you text us when you get there safely, okay?" She planted her face onto his shoulder with a sniffle, almost as if she was holding herself back from crying.

"Mm, I will." Riki's voice was a reassuring whisper. But your eyes were too busy gazing upon his face one more time, silently etching his features into your memories.

Who were you kidding? You had done this exact thing hundreds of times before. But this might be the last time you did so when he was still within your reach. You didn't even realize you had been staring at him until Riki held out his fist towards you.

A friendly gesture that was always a tradition between the two of you — such a shame this might be the last time you would do this after a long while.

"Fistbump?" Riki tilted his head to the side, that same soft smile playing on his lips as he signaled towards his extended fist.

If only this weren't such a poignant moment, you would've teased him; you would've said that having a smile on his face was a foreign look.

But you could barely even gather the strength to smile back at him right now, much less tease him whilst you were already trying not to break down and let your feelings for him explode like a bursting dam.

At least, one fistbump wouldn't hurt.

"Fistbump," you affirmed, bringing your fist to collide against his own for one last time.

"This is the final boarding call for passengers booked on flight J2157 to South Korea. Please proceed to Gate 3 immediately."

It was as if time itself was urging the farewell moments between you and Riki to come to an end, you hated it.

Riki glanced over to the crowd slowly moving towards the said gate, bringing his luggage closer to his figure before turning to his mother. "Kaa-san, I'll text you on the plane. Tell the others goodbye for me, okay?"

"And (Y/N)," he turned to you next, almost taking you by surprise when he did so. But you were even more taken aback when you felt a sudden flick on the center of your forehead — Riki was snickering like a scheming gremlin upon invoking that flabbergasted expression on your face.

"It's nice to see your goofy face before I go."

Even at this sort of moment, he still found the time to joke?

You couldn't help the way the ends of your lips began to curl into a small smile, tinted with a hint of nostalgia. Well, that's the Riki you knew.

You rolled your eyes at his old forehead flick tactic, but that smile on your face couldn't manage to fool anyone.

"See you soon, yeah?" He seemed content upon seeing the smile on your face, leaning back with a satisfied smile.

See you soon, he said. The concept of the word 'soon' had always been far too vague for your liking. It could mean weeks, months, years, any of them — even if you ticked off your calendar day by day, you could never guess when.

See you soon, he said. But when will that 'soon' come? What will become of you and him by then? Would you still stay the same as you were now? Maybe, maybe not.

Riki wanted to become a star, he always shone like no other on the stage. Meanwhile you wanted to live with a sense of sonder, embracing life as it came and went. You and Riki lived in two different worlds, it had always been that way.

See you soon, he said — and what else could you do besides agreeing? You're supposed to be his best friend, after all.

"Yeah... see you soon, Riki."

Such harmless words had never felt so bitter on your tongue before.

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